Protective helmets are known in the art. Many different types of protective helmets exist for various applications, including for playing sports, riding on or in vehicles, for use in dangerous environments such as construction sites, to name but a few. In certain types of activities, there is a significant risk of a person receiving a blow to the head or otherwise hitting their head. These activities include but are not limited to ice hockey, downhill skiing, snowboarding, and skateboarding.
Many existing helmets generally do a good job in reducing or preventing cuts and fractures to the head and skull as a result of an impact to the head.
Many existing helmet designs utilize various foams for structure and for absorbing energy during an impact. Some helmets use small patches of foam, including memory foam, for comfort and fit. For example, memory foam is sometimes positioned within the helmet so that it contacts or is in close proximity to the head of a wearer. The memory foam can provide for a comfortable and snug fit of the helmet. The body heat from the head warms the memory foam, thereby softening it, which makes for a more comfortable and snug fit.
In addition, many existing helmets, including hockey helmets, are fairly rigid in their construction and are also designed to be snuggly fitted and rigidly coupled to the head. The result is that a high proportion of an impact force, particularly a rotational impact force, is transmitted by the helmet to the head of the wearer. In other words, the helmet absorbs little or none of a rotational impact force.
Furthermore, many existing helmets are ventilated to keep the head cool and the wearer comfortable.
However, most helmets are not very effective in preventing concussions, in reducing the severity of concussions, or in preventing or reducing other injuries such as spinal injuries. In normal impacts as might be expected in a sport, existing helmets, while reducing G-force experienced by the head, still permit G-forces to be at unacceptable and dangerously high levels.